Resistance of hybrid steel plate girders subjected to patch loading

Hybrid girders have proven to be an economical alternative to homoge- neous girders since they provide a greater flexural capacity. One of the potential appli- cations of hybrid steel plate girders is their usage in bridge construction. One of the potential constructive methods of these bridges is the push launch method, in which patch loads may condition the design. The aim of this paper is to present advanced conclusions of a research work dealing simultaneously with these two fields; the hybr- id typology when subjected to the particular case of patch loading. The most remarka- ble results of the research work are pointed out. On the one hand, it is shown that the influence of the fyf/fyw ratio (namely, the hybrid grade) is negligible for girders with largely spaced transverse stiffeners. On the other hand, it is shown that this influence can be significant if the transverse stiffeners are closely spaced. Suggestions for consi- dering these findings on design codes are provided at the end paper.